DEMOS

The Media and Communications Internship Programme is aimed at undergraduates and recent graduates interested in pursuing a career in journalism, public affairs, publishing, new media and related disciplines who want to gain experience working in a public policy environment.

All candidates should be interested in current affairs and social policy.

We have approximately seven or eight interns at any one time, working alongside about twenty-five full time staff. Our interns form an integral part of the Demos network. Generally there are six or seven research interns and, one media and communications intern.

Internships will usually last for two or three months. Most internships are full-time (Monday-Friday, 10am-6pm) but hours can be flexible and we also offer part-time internships. Whether you apply for a full-time or part-time internship will not affect your chances of selection.

Work experience placements

Demos is working with Lambeth Education Business Partnership offering work experience placements for secondary school children in Lambeth throughout the year. However, we are also happy to consider work experience placement applications from school students or recent school leavers independently from this collaboration. The application process is the same as for our internship programme, although placements are normally no longer than two weeks.  Please note that  Demos is only able to accept a limited number of  people a year to do work experience.

Audio Visual Interns

Expenses

Internships are unpaid and voluntary, however we can help by paying travel and lunch expenses up to a maximum of £75 per week.

How to apply

If you are keen to work hard and learn in a stimulating and fun environment with like-minded people please send your CV, a covering letter - including the period when you are available, whether you prefer a part-time or full-time internship, and which project area you are interested in - and our diversity form to:

Internship programme
Demos
Magdalen House
136 Tooley Street
London SE1 2TU

Or e-mail us at internships@demos.co.uk

We will contact you to arrange an interview or to inivite you to the Intern Recruitment Workshops which are held at Demos several times a year.

What They Say...

Everything about a Demos internship is a thought-provoking, creative experience; and the recruitment process is no exception. From the first, Demos’ innovative approach is impressive: the intern workshop was a new, fresh way to find people excited by the possibility of having conversations about everyday democracy.

Over a two or three month internship, a Demos intern will have an extraordinary range of experiences and insights. Working on a number of different research programmes generates a necessary overview of the current UK public policy climate, as well as providing an opportunity to discover the ins and outs of a sector or topic that may not be your academic own. And that is one of the best things about Demos: the variety of projects on a variety of subjects that together form an incisive, persuasive account of the political, social and civil landscape. I helped prepare for a workshop on security sector reform; researched the existing literature on young people and digital medias; and worked on a number of different items for the Self-Build Cities programme looking at the future of Glasgow, the Olympic legacy for Barcelona, and the cultural life of London. Through my work, I discovered or cultivated policy interests that either had been unknown to, or overlooked by, me; and which have gone on to inform my own academic aspirations.

During my internship at Demos, I felt that my input was treated seriously, that my professional and pastoral progress was of concern, and that my own research interests were nourished. I encountered a wonderfully welcoming workplace, full of interesting, driven people who were also a lot of fun. Furthermore, the adminstrative side of things gave me an invaluable insight into the organisational side of the non-profit sector; and taught me genuine transferable skills, like database and event management, seminar facilitation, and workload balancing.

The open-plan office at Demos creates a dynamic space for exchanges between researchers, and cross-fertilisation between projects. And interns are included within that space, treated as intelligent people, with legitimate opinions, invited to be a whole part of the office and the work. Put this together with perhaps six other interns and the exceptional Mentor programme, and you are afforded a real identity at Demos, even if you are only there for a matter of weeks.

Overall, a truly inspiring experience. Anna Rader

Ethical Internship Policy

Demos participated in the drafting of the Interns Network's  Good Practice Guidelines for Ethical Internships and aims to translate these guidelines into practice and follow an ethical internship policy.

You can find more information on the Interns Network and its activities at www.internsnetwork.org.uk

Demos Greenhouse